66 



3. Clearwater River Drainage 



The Clearwater River is tributary to the Blackfoot River near Clearwater 

 Junction, Montana. The watershed is defined by the Swan Range to the 

 northeast, the Mission Range to the west, and lesser divides to the 

 north and east. The Clearwater River and tributaries are included in 

 the DNR&C basin 76F and are classified as B-Dj waters by the DHES. 



Forestland ownership patterns are extremely varied in the Clearwater 

 River drainage. The USPS has contiguous ownership in the extreme head- 

 water areas, as does Burlington Northern (BN) in the Mt. Henry area. 

 Elsewhere, a very intermingled pattern of ownership exists which includes 

 Champion, BN, USPS, state, BLM, and small private landowners. 



The watershed has sustained heavy logging and road building activities 

 on parts of most ownerships; the USPS, BN, and Champion have most actively 

 pursued si Ivi cultural activities. Related impacts to water quality have 

 been reported by the USPS, DP&G, DNR&C (Porestry Division), and in other 

 research on water quality. Non-USPS lands contributing to water quality 

 degradation are outlined in Table VI-B3 and located on Plate I. 



Other management activities also affect water quality in the Clearwater 

 River. Agricultural practices (grazing) have caused deterioration of some 

 streambanks and shorelines (DHES, 1975). Recent urbanization activities 

 have also contributed to non-point pollution. 



Natural conditions within the watershed contribute to seasonal water 

 quality variations. Unconsolidated clay-to-gravel -si zed material 

 (Quaternary) is present in the valley bottom and is a source of sediment 

 during periods of high flow. Silvicultural activities can directly 



